Record $5 billion in False Claims Act penalties issued this year

DOJ says cases against drug companies contributed significantly to that number

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Tuesday that the False Claims Act reached a record $5 billion in penalties in the federal fiscal year that ended on Sept. 30. Do you think balloons and a banner popped down from the ceiling when they hit that number? Let’s hope so.

The previous record, from 2006, was $3.1 billion. This year blew it out of the water, helped in large part by an enormous off-label marketing settlement from GlaxoSmithKline. The $3 billion settlement included $1.5 billion in penalties under the False Claims Act. Cases against drugmakers like GSK were instrumental in reaching this record number, the DOJ said.

"Fraud against the government is not just a problem that affects us as taxpayers. It is a problem that affects us as parents and as patients," Stuart Delery, head of the DOJ’s civil division, said in a statement.